David P

Kelly. Please accept my deepest sympathies on the passing of your mother. Take care. David P.

Hey there Angie. Hope all goes well with your father, and please take care of yourself too. David P.

Take care Cat...keep your head up. David P.

Renee. I am saddened to hear of the passing of David. I send my sincere condolences to you and your family. If there ever was a beautiful way to die, it sounds like David experienced it -- surrounded by his loved ones, with you whispering in his ear. Take care Renee. David P.

Thanks for the post relay Ry. Hey there Grumpy. Awesome, awesome, awesome, wonderfully uplifting story!!! Just like Melinda, reading your post made my day -- I love it! And by the way...I don't think you're really that Grumpy...keep up the fight. Take care, David P.

Hey David. Hang in there bud. I can't say I know what you're going through, but I can imagine it's got to be pretty bad. But I can't imagine what it would be like to have to choose such a treatment, knowing how bad it can be, AND knowing that the only other choice is where most don't want to go. If I wore a hat, it would be off to you my friend. YOU are my source of inspiration. Thanks for that. Stay strong and positive. I'll be thinking of you. Hope things improve for you. Take care David. David

Ditto Deb. What they said. Take care. David P.

Hey there James. Find your mother another doctor who hasn't already added your mom to the statistic pile. Each individual reacts differently to the treatments. And there are new treatments and clinical trials coming out all the time. There is hope for longer life, but you need a doctor that believes that is a possibility. Keep us posted James, and stay strong for your mom and sister. Take care. David P.

Hey there Shirl. It's been quite some time since my surgery, but I still remember the coughing and associated pain, but both will slowly go away. As for breathing, don't expect it to improve much without a bit of effort. I'm a believer that you must look for ways to "work" your lung and a half back into better shape than they were before surgery. Go for walks and climb stairs -- gradually at first -- when you're out of breath, you naturally breath deeper. After a while your breathing will improve, and you can increase the effort with which you work your lung, which will increase your overall lung capacity. Becky, I still get sharp pains up in my left collar bone area, and I still have some numbness around my scar. Take care Shirl. David P.

Oh Jane, I wish I could reach right through this computer to give you one very big HUG! You need to take as much time as you need to deal with your situation. The weddings and having family close by is sure to help, but I also think your husband is right about the counselling. Hope you can make it work. Take good care of yourself Jane. David P.

Made me laugh too, Beth. Sounds exactly like something I would do as well -- take cover if I ever saw the high school cheerleader in the store. I just have trouble relating to that spandex thingy under the shirt... and this is no magazine cut out -- the girls at my 25th year high school reuinon voted me "The Best Preserved". So there. David

Hi Beth. I don't get into this forum often enough, but I just want to say to you what inspiration I get from reading your posts. Your determination and "bring it on - is that as bad as it gets?" attitude is amazing!!! I can never assume that I even remotely know what you, Betty, Cathy, Nancy, and everyone else on treatment is going through -- I somehow almost feel cheated that I missed having these treatments you all are talking about. But I certainly admire how you handle the effects of your treatment with such courage, and still manage to post advice for others. All of you who have ever undergone, or are currently undergoing treatments are my kind of heros. Please keep that bring it on attitude close to your hearts. Take care Beth, and good luck with the rest of your treatments. David P.

Like the saying used to go Kim, Keep on Truckin'. High blood counts are good. Here's hoping all continues to go well with your mom's treatment, and she starts feeling better soon. Take care. David P.

OH what a relief it must be to you Karen, your mom, and your family to have such good results in such a short amount of time, You have every right to kick all the butts you can find. Hope the new stuff works well also. Take care. David P.

Hey there Don and Lucie. Don, you continue to be the caregiver's caregiver. You not only stay ahead of the oncologist with the new treatments, but you take such good care of your dear Lucie, AND have time to be a great inspiration to all, and answer pretty well EVERY post in EVERY forum on this message board. Here's to Lucie's chemo being VERY successful, and to you Don -- don't forget to get some downtime in for yourself. Take care. David P.

Happy belated anniversary Cheryl and Jack. I don't get to this forum much. It sounds like your treatments are moving steadily in the right direction, Cheryl. I hope things continue to go well for you. Hey Cheryl, when I come down to ride with Lance can I stop by your ranch for a visit? It sounds like such a wonderful place to be. Take care, and here's to the next 21 years!! David P.

This has been one of the most difficult messages for me to respond to. Bob and I joined the message board the same day. We both had our left lungs removed. We could both produce rather large burps when we leaned to the left. We were both very active -- with him hiking Costa Rica only weeks after his surgery. I thought for sure, after more than three years of survival, Bob was just like me, and would be around for a very long time. I hate this disease. I send my sincere condolences to Bob's family. He is already greatly missed. David

Peggy. I am certain you and Don will have many more wonderful years ahead of you. Congratulations on a year that must have been one of the more difficult ones. Take care. David P.

Hi Nell. Wonderful vacations are a must every now and again. Glad to hear Bob has finaly been referred. Hope everything goes well for him. Take care. David P.

Hey Sean. Glad you pushed for second opinions. Hope everything goes well for your father. Take care. David P.

Hello Hickory. You, like I, have inadvertantly found one of the selfish qualities of being an active member of this wonderful message board -- which is how good you feel when you read the responses from people who have truely been helped and inspired by something we may have said. I did think I had something to offer when I joined the board, but hey, I'll be the first to admit that I have received more help from these folks than I ever imagined I needed. I have read all the responses in this thread, and BOY, were you wrong about having anything to offer!! Thanks for checking us out, and for sticking around. Take care. David P.

Hi Carrie. Glad you found us. Keep posting. Take care. David P.

Hey there Kaffie Kathy. However many percentage type statistics are floated around out there by the professionals on your chances of survival, try not to get too caught up in them. Since I have been on this message board I have witnessed many, many cases of willful disregard, as people continue pay no attention to their onc's stats, and put themselves at risk of living a further 9, 12, 14, and even 27 years (me) longer than "Mr. Statistics" said. I believe that the power of the human spirit can in itself affect survival rates. And that's all I have to say about that. Take care. David p.

Hey there Bay. You are doing the right thing -- ask, ask, and ask some more. Hope all goes well with your father. Take care. David P

Thanks for the kind words everybody. I know my role on this board is mainly a cheerleader for all of you out there struggling to make something positive happen. If I can help with some happy thoughts of what future possibilities may hold... then, as Cathy said, I am very proud of that. David C I hope everything goes well for you, and no, I'm not going to wear my white jersey -- I think I will frame it instead. And Don, I did receive your email last week, thanks for the thoughts. And everybody else too. I'm off to work. Take care. (PS sorry my photo is so large - this is the first time I've figured out how to post a photo without sending it to Rick) David